Joint Cross-correlation Analysis Reveals Complex, Time-dependent Functional Relationship Between Cortical Neurons and Arm Electromyograms

Overview

Journal J Neurophysiol

Publisher American Physiological Society

Specialties Neurology
Physiology

Date 2014 Sep 12

PMID 25210153

Citations 5

Authors

Katie Z Zhuang

Mikhail A Lebedev

Miguel A L Nicolelis

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Correlation between cortical activity and electromyographic (EMG) activity of limb muscles has long been a subject of neurophysiological studies, especially in terms of corticospinal connectivity. Interest in this issue has recently increased due to the development of brain-machine interfaces with output signals that mimic muscle force. For this study, three monkeys were implanted with multielectrode arrays in multiple cortical areas. One monkey performed self-timed touch pad presses, whereas the other two executed arm reaching movements. We analyzed the dynamic relationship between cortical neuronal activity and arm EMGs using a joint cross-correlation (JCC) analysis that evaluated trial-by-trial correlation as a function of time intervals within a trial. JCCs revealed transient correlations between the EMGs of multiple muscles and neural activity in motor, premotor and somatosensory cortical areas. Matching results were obtained using spike-triggered averages corrected by subtracting trial-shuffled data. Compared with spike-triggered averages, JCCs more readily revealed dynamic changes in cortico-EMG correlations. JCCs showed that correlation peaks often sharpened around movement times and broadened during delay intervals. Furthermore, JCC patterns were directionally selective for the arm-reaching task. We propose that such highly dynamic, task-dependent and distributed relationships between cortical activity and EMGs should be taken into consideration for future brain-machine interfaces that generate EMG-like signals.

Citing Articles

Coupling Effects of Cross-Corticomuscular Association during Object Manipulation Tasks on Different Haptic Sensations.

Guerrero-Mendez C, Blanco-Diaz C, Rivera-Flor H, De Souza A, Jaramillo-Isaza S, Ruiz-Olaya A NeuroSci. 2024; 4(3):195-210.

PMID: 39483199 PMC: 11523752. DOI: 10.3390/neurosci4030018.

Analysis of neuronal ensemble activity reveals the pitfalls and shortcomings of rotation dynamics.

Lebedev M, Ossadtchi A, Mill N, Urpi N, Cervera M, Nicolelis M Sci Rep. 2019; 9(1):18978.

PMID: 31831758 PMC: 6908571. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-54760-4.

Commentary: Cortical activity in the null space: permitting preparation without movement.

Lebedev M Front Neurosci. 2018; 11:502.

PMID: 29503605 PMC: 5820534. DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2017.00502.

Intracortical Brain-Machine Interfaces Advance Sensorimotor Neuroscience.

Schroeder K, Chestek C Front Neurosci. 2016; 10:291.

PMID: 27445663 PMC: 4923184. DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2016.00291.

Interareal Spike-Train Correlations of Anterior Cingulate and Dorsal Prefrontal Cortex during Attention Shifts.

Oemisch M, Westendorff S, Everling S, Womelsdorf T J Neurosci. 2015; 35(38):13076-89.

PMID: 26400938 PMC: 6605436. DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1262-15.2015.

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